The Bears And The Moose (Caribou, Washington: houses, quality of life, to live in)

[Nor'Eastah]

Of course I know what they look like...but outside of a zoo, I have never seen one of either in person! Am I likely not to see much of them up in Maine? I know you have deer up there also, but we have a deer overpopulation problem in my neck of the woods. Still, in our home town, I have seen deer just 3 times in about 10 years!

I expect to see deer up there, but not so sure about bear or moose. Do they come in close to houses? When do the bears hibernate (I know, in "winter" ) but any dates? Are all 3 hunted? My wife is a little wary of bears, but I told her she'd be lucky if she even saw one. The bear would probably be more afraid of her.

Just curious about our "wild" neighbors-to-be - that is, the non-human "wild" ones! OK...tell me I am wrong about all this!

[Bydand]

Deer are here, but in my part of the state we see more Moose than deer. It is feast or famine usually for seeing them. You can go months and not see one, then everyplace you look there is one or two. Before the snow got real deep I counted 12 Moose in the 11 Mile drive to Caribou from my house. Bear you don't see as much, but I can bet on seeing 3 or 4 every year at least. Have only had a few bears who really didn't want me in their neck of the woods, and rather than dispute their claim to it, I conceded and went my own way.

[Northern Maine Land Man]

Bears are primarily nocturnal animals. I see about one bear a year on average and I spend a lot of time on back roads in Maine.

Moose are very common. They are too common. We are overrun with moose and they are a hazard on the roads. We should have an open season on moose until their numbers come back down to a safer level. I know; People like to see moose. Nothing wrong with that, but public safety still has to enter into game management.

The only time I see bear in the daytime is the middle two weeks of August when they are gorging themselves on raspberries. They own the raspberry patch they happen to be in. If you ever hear a bear popping his jaws just calmly move away. Either that or run like He||!

;-)

[nullgeo]

[quote=

Moose are very common. They are too common. We are overrun with moose and they are a hazard on the roads. We should have an open season on moose until their numbers come back down to a safer level. I know; People like to see moose. Nothing wrong with that, but public safety still has to enter into game management.

;-)[/quote]

Here in the great NW we also have moose on the loose (Eastern Washington does) ... seen with some ease in some areas ... but the hunt is by lottery (as most places) with only a few hundred tags issued each year ... and it's a "once in your life" hunt ... never get another chance.

I read the Maine hunting regulations and see Lots of tags awarded each year in the lotteries. Thousands of moose harvested. How likely / unlikely is it to get a moose tag over a period of a couple or three years? Lots of competition in the lottery from out-of-state hunters?

[grimstuff]

This thread is making me hungry for moose burgers.

[nullgeo]

mmmmmmmmmm ... Homer loves mooseburrrrrgers ;-)

[Bydand]

Spicy moose meatballs in bar-b-que sauce. Mouth is watering right now just thinking of them.

[Maineah]

Originally Posted by nullgeo

Here in the great NW we also have moose on the loose (Eastern Washington does) ... seen with some ease in some areas ... but the hunt is by lottery (as most places) with only a few hundred tags issued each year ... and it's a "once in your life" hunt ... never get another chance.

I read the Maine hunting regulations and see Lots of tags awarded each year in the lotteries. Thousands of moose harvested. How likely / unlikely is it to get a moose tag over a period of a couple or three years? Lots of competition in the lottery from out-of-state hunters?

I have drawn three moose permits since 1985. I guess I'm lucky as no one else among the six or so guys I hunt with on a regular basis has ever won one. The odds for a Maine resident is somewhere around 80 to 1. For non-residents it's probably closer to 400-500 to 1. The number of moose permits has been steadily rising since the initial test season in 1980.This year they're issuing 3015 permits. Get your application in by April 1!

[dmyankee]

Remember...

A moose in the freezer is one less chance of barreling into one in the road!

[island mermaid]

Originally Posted by nullgeo

Well, yes, the variety of places, peoples, and cultures, and flora and fauna, on this planet provides us all with nearly boundless choices for areas to live in that suit us best, doesn't it? For example, I am drawn to rather remote wilderness kinds of areas where people know how to mostly mind to their own and give other folks space to pursue life as they please, as long as it is essential and not destructive to others ... you know, pursuits like the primordial drives of hunting and fishing! — a naturally deeply rooted and essential characteristic of life in Maine!

As one drawn away from the east coast many many years ago and to the Great Pacific NW for quality of life, wilderness, and, yes, hunting and fishing — but who now must share the qualities of this piece of the earth with Millions and Millions of newcomers who have more than doubled the area population since my arrival 38 years ago, and who continue to arrive in unstoppable waves (more from the mid-west, like Chicago, than anywhere) — it is a great relief to know that there is still my old Maine, hardly changed by comparison, and to where I may return: to hunt and fish and live with space around me again and without nearly as much of what I consider frivolous being imposed on a spectacular environment.

(2 million in western Washington when I moved out here ... an area about the size of Maine ... now nearly 5 million here ... all the same while Maine has grown by about 200,000 ... and me, still without a cellphone ... oh my!)

I imagine that if Maine's population exploded to roughly 4x its current density, well, I suspect most folks there would miss the good old days of hunting (moose!) and fishing mentality. And miss it Badly!

Well I can't rep you again just yet, but just wanted to say "Nicely said, great post and perfect timing to boot!"